This disclosure relates to an interface for inter-device communication in a battery management and protection system.
Some devices and systems, such as hybrid electrical vehicles, use multi-cell battery stacks. Such battery stacks may include, for example, battery cells coupled to one or more integrated circuit (IC) chips. The chips typically include a controller (e.g., a microcontroller) and circuitry and provide, among other things, battery cell management and protection.
In applications that require or use multiple IC devices to handle the battery cells, the IC devices may be connected to a microcontroller in a daisy chain configuration communication. The interfaces in the daisy chain configuration sometimes are connected to one another using relatively long (e.g., one meter) unshielded wires. In some applications such as the automotive environment, high noise levels can be injected into the wires and cause interference.